Machinists: If You Had to Teach a Machinist Course in ONE WEEK, What Would You Cover?

onecut jimmy said:
Tony I still own the shop but most machinery is gone.
While I was in business I taught a class called The Art OF Machining.
My students worked for my customers. They were candidates for the machinist apprenticeship program.
The first thing I did was give all 22 of them a 1/4"/X2"X4" piece of 6061 aluminum bar stock and a drill.and a drawing.
The only operation left was to drill the 1/2" hole in the exact center of the block. The I asked . What is the very first thing you have to do?

How would you answer that question?
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First thing I'd have to do is ask what tolerances I had, then permission to use the appropriate machine and tooling. Maybe the tolerance would be on the drawing. It should be. If it were, then I'd inspect the prior work. The rest kind of depends on that. Plus I don't know what machines you have available for me to use.

But you only asked for the first thing. This, of course, assuming we were all (22 of us) gathered in your shop/classroom and already wearing our PPE.:whistle:
 
Tony Wells said:
First thing I'd have to do is ask what tolerances I had, then permission to use the appropriate machine and tooling. Maybe the tolerance would be on the drawing. It should be. If it were, then I'd inspect the prior work. The rest kind of depends on that. Plus I don't know what machines you have available for me to use.

But you only asked for the first thing. This, of course, assuming we were all (22 of us) gathered in your shop/classroom and already wearing our PPE.:whistle:
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Your half right You should have checked the drill size first. I gave you a 33/64 drill if you used it the piece was ruined and it was your fault. Yes I gave it to you but IS NOT MY PROBLEM. Your the machinist the sole 100% RESPONSIBILITY FOR IT'S ACCURACY IS YOURS. MACHINIST live in a world where there are tolerances that must be held. There is only right and wrong No Good Enough.
Except when your freaking typing. Wouldn't it be a blast if we all posted recordings instead og typing.
My point is You must understand the difference between machining for fun and doing it for profit. The first thing you have to learn is to accept responsibility.
 
Well, just to keep this going, not to be argumentative, but even if you gave me a 33/64" drill, that might be just fine, if the drawing allowed the hole to be over nominal size. For example, if the print said 0.5000 +0.000/-0.0002, then I wouldn't want a 1/2" drill even. I'd want an undersized drill and either a precision boring head or a reamer, or possibly a burnishing tool. Several options, actually. If, on the other, the drawing said 1/2" +/- 1/16", then I MIGHT chance the drill. Even if I knew it was 33/64", there's no absolute guaranty that it would cut on size.

BTW, I'm not a hobbyist, so I should probably stay out of this.
 
Don't even take them to the shop. Teach them how to measure and how to read mics, verniers, and anything else related to measurement that you anticipate they will need to use! How much material gets scrapped because new guys don't know how to read something as basic as a tape measure?
 
and i was going to say "measure the stock". I keep a 6" scale in my apron for quick checks.
 
First asking what YOU would cover in a week is the wrong question. The better question is what would the student be able to do after a week of training. This is not ment as nit picking. I spent a working lifetime teaching vocations & skills & it took a long time in the classroom & shop to come to this conclusion.

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First asking what YOU would cover in a week is the wrong question. The better question is what would the student be able to do after a week of training. This is not ment as nit picking. I spent a working lifetime teaching vocations & skills & it took a long time in the classroom & shop to come to this conclusion.
 
Fascinating thread!!

I just signed up for my 1st machinist course scheduled to begin August 2013.
Sounds like I've got 63 hours of micrometer, hacksaw, draw file, and sharpening drills and lathe cutters.
I am excited to learn how I am supposed to do stuff vs. how I've taught myself to do stuff.
The larger and more difficult question is -- what is competence -- ?

Actual course description:

Description

This course will give the student an overview of machining technology as it is used in the manufacturing industry today. The course also covers shop safety, use of hand tools, use of precision measuring tools and the operation of the pedestal grinder. This course will cover the characteristics of hazardous wastes and its safe handling, storage, and disposal. (Prereq: None) (BP/EP) 3 cr
 
Nelson said:
Machinist courses are hard to find these days. Community colleges are discontinuing them. Some trade schools are doing quite well filling in the gaps.

What if WE created a ONE WEEK machinist program, and got one of you experts to teach it (for a small honorarium of course).

What would you cover?

I am throwing this out as an idea- please fill in the blanks.

Anyone interested in doing this in your area?


--------------
1. Basic Instruction
Basic Instruction includes a review of all safety rules and practices, …It is approximately one hour long

2. RED Certification
This class is two hours long …will be able to use the Machine Shop, but only during business hours and only shen the shop manager is present.

The following equipment is available to this group of users:

All sheet metal equipment (shear, punches and brake)
All measuring tools (rules, tape measure, calipers and micrometers)
All hand tools (hammers, screwdrivers, hacksaw, etc)
Band saws, both vertical and horizontal
Abrasive saw
Hydraulic press
Drill press
Belt sander and grinding wheels

3. GREEN Certification
The GREEN certification consists of one-on-one training and may take up to 40 hours to complete, … may use the shop 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

All GREEN certified students are allowed to operate all of the equipment available to the RED-certified group as well as the following tools:

Milling machines
Lathes
Surface grinder

To reach the Green level the instructor has to certify the student's compentency with the following check list:

SAWS
Competency in the use of the vertical band saw
Competency in the use of the horizontal band saw

DRILL PRESS
Exhibit a safe working knowledge of using a drill press

LATHE
Identify the three basic parts of an engine lathe
Setup lathe to face off and turn down a work piece
Center drill and drill a hole using the tailstock
Bore out the inside diameter of a part to a specific size
Cut an internal screw thread using a tap in the lathe
Cut an external screw thread using the lathe for alignment
Learn how to adjust the feeds and speeds of the lathe

MILLING MACHINE
Align the machine vise to travel parallel with the “X” axis
Ability to change tooling in the machines head
Machine a part square and parallel to a specific size
Locate the position of a hole or slot using an edge finder
Locate the center of an existing hole using a dial indicator
Demonstrate working knowledge in the use of a sine bar

MEASURING SKILLS
Competent in the use of dial calipers
Competent in the use of micrometers
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It depends on the students if they want to be there or were assigned. The better students are those who want to be there. I don't think I would be a good teacher. I know a couple of high school shop teachers who have their hands full.
 
I taught shop for my first 6 years out of college. I soon discovered than many students could not read below 1/2" on a ruler. I'd spend the first week drilling into their heads how to read a ruler down to 1/32". This was in a woodworking shop,BTW.

Let alone trying to teach them to deal with .001",like I said,it took a week just to get them to read a common ruler. It is truly amazing how inept many students really are on simple things like ordinary measuring. They just aren't learning that these days.
 
Nothing drives me batty more than a 15 year "tradesman" not knowing how to sharpen drills, but after that it would be the importance of speeds and feeds and how it affects the tools
 
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